20 small charities today have been selected to receive a core grant of £6,500 and a year’s strategic planning support from Pilotlight as 2018 Weston Charity Awards winners. As the winners are announced, the Garfield Weston Foundation says small charities need support to focus on long-term planning to meet the challenge of rising demand against a backdrop of limited extra resources.
Applications to the awards reveal small charities want support to maximise their impact and help more people. This is backed up by research carried out by the Weston Charity Awards among small charity leaders showing they expect to deliver more with less in 2018. Three in five small to medium sized charities expect to support more service users in 2018, despite that fact, most are not confident of income growth in that time.
Nearly 200 applicants applied to the Awards, highlighting the demand for skills and leadership development from small charities on the frontline of delivering welfare, youth and community services to some of the most vulnerable people in society. Well over a third of applications came from charities focused on children and young people - an increase from just under a third in 2017. This increase indicates charity leaders from the youth sector, in particular, are seeking strategic support.
Philippa Charles, Director of the Garfield Weston Foundation which established the Weston Charity Awards said:
"Small charities have stepped up to deliver essential services in their communities and are extremely adept at being highly creative with limited resources. Their directors wear many hats as they juggle multiple roles."
Initially set up in 2014 to celebrate and support great frontline charities in the North East of England, the Weston Charity Awards quickly expanded to the North West, the Midlands and, in 2018, Wales - areas identified by the Foundation as having the greatest need.
According to the UK Civil Society Almanac, half of England’s charities are based in London, the South East and South West – with 3.2 charitable organisations per 1,000 people in the South West compared to just 1.7 in the North. These figures highlight how charities in the North have to work disproportionately harder to meet the needs of the communities they support. Things are also unequal among the home nations with 3.6 charities per 1,000 people in Scotland, compared to just 2.3 in Wales. This shows Welsh charities, too, need to stretch their resources because there are less of them.
Gillian Murray, Chief Executive of Pilotlight, said:
“Large charities have been in the spotlight in recent months for the right and for the wrong reasons. Meanwhile, up and down the country small charities are quietly facing rising demands for their services. Our programme is an opportunity for the award winners to develop the skills they need to make the maximum impact, even as they are being stretched to capacity.”
The directors of the 20 winning charities will be matched with teams of senior business leaders for a programme of mentoring and coaching, to strengthen their organisations and increase impact. They also receive £6,500 of unrestricted funding from the Garfield Weston Foundation to take part in the programme, as well as access to the advice and support of Pilotlight.
The winning charities are:
- Vital, provides advocacy support for people experiencing episodes of poor mental health in Bradford and Airedale.
- Blackburn & Darwen District Without Abuse, provides crisis support and ongoing recovery support to women and children who are victims of domestic abuse.
- Cardiff City FC Community Foundation, runs a programme of activities to support children, young people and families in South Wales.
- Care Network, Blackburn with Darwen, supports vulnerable people and their carers.
- Carers Trust Tyne & Wear, offers support to those providing unpaid care to a relative, partner or friend within the Gateshead area.
- Cerebral Palsy Sport, a national disability sports charity, which supports people with cerebral palsy to reach their life potential through sport.
- Dudley Advocacy, supports independent decision making by upholding human rights and championing the empowerment of vulnerable people.
- Endeavour Training, works with disadvantaged young people excluded from communities and society in and around Sheffield.
- GISDA, supports vulnerable young people in Gywnedd, such as those who are homeless or those in, or just out of, care.
- Independent Advocacy North East, supports vulnerable adults to have their voices heard and make their own informed decisions.
- Leicester LGBT Centre, provides services and support to the LGBT+ community in Leicester.
- Mencap Liverpool, champions the rights of people with learning disabilities in Liverpool.
- Reach South Sheffield, supports people in deprived local communities to build confidence and resilience, so that they can make positive change for themselves, their families and their communities.
- Recovery Cymru, supports people in Cardiff & Vale to achieve and maintain recovery from drug and/or alcohol misuse while supporting others to do the same.
- SAYiT Yorkshire, provides support and social opportunities for young LGBT people and young people who are affected by HIV.
- Serve, provides a wide range of services for the elderly and adults with disabilities in Northamptonshire so they can continue to live independently for as long as possible.
- Swansea Young Single Homeless Project, works with young people (16-25) in Swansea who are homeless or at risk of homelessness.
- Paul Sartori Hospice at Home, offers hospice services to people over the age of 18 living in Pembrokeshire in their own homes.
- Worcestershire Association of Carers, supports adults providing unpaid care for a relative, partner or friend in Worcestershire.
- Wyre Forest Nightstop and Mediation Service, works with young people (16-25) who are homeless or at risk of homelessness in Kidderminster.